1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to front loading refuse containers found at apartment and business complexes specially designed for mechanical lifting and emptying The invention further relates to modifying such bins to have a foot operable lid to allow two handed placement of trash in the bin and requiring no special precautions to avoid damage to the lid opening mechanism when the bin is lifted and emptied.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Heavy, sometimes wheel-mounted, refuse containers, which are lifted and emptied by lifting mechanisms of large refuse trucks, are very common. These containers are generally categorized into two primary groups, known in the industry as front-end loading (FEL) and rear-end loading (REL).
Front-end loading trucks are equipped with widely spaced forks mounted forward of the cab, and it is with these forks that the FEL container is lifted and inverted for emptying refuse into the truck.
In recent years, most apartment and business complexes have been provided with FEL refuse containers. The containers are too large and heavy for manual emptying. The forks on the truck are placed into sleeves constructed on the outside of each sidewall of the refuse container. It is with these forks that the container is lifted and inverted for emptying.
The containers are typically equipped with one or two plastic lids which are pivotally secured to the rear wall at the top, allowing them to be raised by hand for the placement of trash in the bin. This gives rise to a number of problems. Users of the containers find little benefit to the lids since it is awkward to hold the lid open with one hand and dump their trash with the other. The users frequently rotate the lids 270.degree., leaving them open. An open container not only causes obvious sanitary problems and noisome smells to the general public but also creates unwanted weight during rainy seasons which leads to added dumping fees or even financial overweight penalties for refuse contractors.